Statement by NOW President Toni Van Pelt:

WASHINGTON — The National Organization for Women stands in solidarity with Pittsburgh’s Jewish community following the horrific attack on the Tree of Life Synagogue. Eleven worshippers were gunned down by a vicious anti-Semite who felt free to express his hatred towards Jews, even as he was being arrested.

Our sadness today makes us even more determined to show that hate speech, hate crimes, racism, sexism, and cruelty disguised as political conservatism has no place in American life.

The Pittsburgh shooter’s social media posts on GAB, an alternative platform expressly created to give haven and comfort to racists, shows that hate speech is being welcomed by online communities, political networks, and supporters of politicians who preach hatred and division.

A few days before the massacre in Pittsburgh, a gunman killed two African American shoppers at a Kentucky grocery store, after failing to gain entry into a nearby black church. Local media reported that when a white man who was himself armed confronted the shooter in the store to try and stop him, the gunman said, “whites don’t kill whites” and moved on.

NOW condemns not only these violent acts but also the environment that fosters, sustains and encourages them. We have an opportunity as a nation to send a message on Election Day that intolerance and bigotry have no place in our politics, our communities, or in the White House.

On Tuesday, October 30, exactly one week before the midterm election, NOW will join a national telephone town hall to mobilize a progressive response to these events. Sign up here to join the call and take a stand with us against hate. Some are calling this a “new normal,” but in fact this is the same hatred that has plagued us for centuries. It is a backlash against the 53% of Americans who voted for a liberal feminist for President, and the two electoral majorities won by our first black President. Racists and anti-Semites feel they are losing their positions of power, and they are acting, enabling and sanctioning acts of violence and terror to preserve their privilege.

A few hours after the shooting, Donald Trump suggested he might have to cancel his evening political rally because standing in the rain while making a statement to the press about Pittsburgh was causing him to have a bad hair day. It never occurred to him to cancel his plans in order to show presidential leadership or human compassion.

We have a way of speaking out against such indifference and intolerance. Our vote is our voice—and on November 6, we will use it.

Contact

NOW Press, press@now.org, 202-628-8669

Statement by NOW President Toni Van Pelt:

The Trump Administration’s Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is considering a radical rollback of Obama-era decisions that recognized gender largely as an individual’s choice and not determined by the sex assigned at birth. This right-wing, extremist policy is designed to deprive transgender people of recognition and protection under civil rights law. It is clear that the administration intends to use this attack on trans persons as a message to energize their right-wing supporters prior to the mid-term election.

NOW unequivocally condemns the Trump Administration’s latest attack on transgender Americans. Over the course of the last two years, the Trump Administration has attacked the rights of transgender citizens. These attacks have been systematic and we must not only remain vigilant against further actions, but also seek to widen protections for non-binary people, trans people, and gender non-conforming individuals.

Earlier this year, the Department of Education rescinded an Obama Era guidance that recommended schools respect the rights of transgender students by allowing them to access gender affirming spaces including programs and bathrooms. As anti-bathroom laws proliferated across the United States, the rescinding of this guidance was a blow to the securing federal protections for transgender students.

The Department of Education rebuffed criticism to the decision and said that transgender students were still protected against discrimination and harassment under civil rights laws. The HHS’s new proposal to narrowly define sex discrimination as either female or male, unchangeable and determined by genitals proves that the Department had no intention of keeping this promise.

For the Trump Administration to remove civil rights protections against trans people will further exacerbate violence against them. Transphobic violence and harassment has been increasing in recent years and Trump’s unethical and harmful policies do nothing but legitimize anti-trans rhetoric. Transphobic violence and harassment disproportionately affect trans women and trans women of color and Trump’s policies will greatly affect their livelihoods.

Trump’s treatment of trans-Americans is indicative of his core beliefs. Human rights, dignity, and federal support will only be afforded to those who look, act, and think like him. We have a simple message for the Trump Administration: Trans people will not be erased. Not from history, not from civil rights, and not from our country. NOW stands with trans people and reaffirms our commitment to supporting and promoting policies that protect and uplift trans and non-binary people.

When voters go to the polls in the midterms, they should ask themselves if they want to support candidates who believe in restricting or eliminating civil rights protections or expanding them. Our vote is our voice—and we intend to use it.

Contact

NOW Press, press@now.org, 202-628-8669

Statement by NOW President Toni Van Pelt:

WASHINGTON– Donald Trump picked a Supreme Court Justice cast in his own image. Trump chose a bully, a serial liar and a man who treats women with disrespect. These are the qualities that Donald Trump most admires.

NOW was proud to work in coalition with other groups that rose up in opposition to Brett Kavanaugh. For more than 50 years, NOW has been on the frontlines of history, and this effort was nothing short of historic. We have just witnessed the opening moves in a cynical, dangerous strategy.

Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell are seeking to perpetuate a toxic culture of male fury designed to hold women back and hold on to power.

They are betting they can mobilize a party of angry white men and the women who enable them, energized by the Brett Kavanaugh nomination. They see the midterm elections as their chance to repudiate the #MeToo movement and further marginalize women.

The massive uprising against Brett Kavanaugh, like the Women’s March before it, will go down as a turning point in history. The energy and activism sparked by this nomination will not go away. It is now a permanent force in our politics and society.

NOW is more determined than ever to challenge the culture of anger and fear that produced this nomination. We will take this message to voters in the next election – NOW is going to march, canvass, call and campaign with vigor, energy and, enthusiasm like never before. No More Kavanaughs, no more Trumps, no more McConnells.

Enough is Enough.

Contact

Brittany T. Oliver, comms@now.org, 202-628-8669